After failing to make the final cut for the Boston Celtics’ regular season roster, free agent guard Lonnie Walker IV has agreed to sign with the EuroLeague’s Zalgiris Kaunas, ESPN’s Shams Charania and Bobby Marks.
Lonnie Walker IV will sign with Zalgiris Kaunas of the Euroleague, agent George S. Langberg of GSL Sports Group tells me and @BobbyMarks42. The deal will include an NBA buyout clause until Feb. 18. The 25-year-old G has averaged 10 points in 20 minutes a game in six NBA seasons. pic.twitter.com/0ooJDpUTXy
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 30, 2024
The deal will include an NBA buyout that’s open until Feb. 18.
Celtics Lose Free Agent Roster Hopeful Lonnie Walker IV To EuroLeague
The 18th overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft out of Miami, Walker has played for three teams in his NBA career.
In four seasons with the San Antonio Spurs, the high-flyer averaged 9.4 points per game but shot 41.4 percent from the field and 34.3 percent from deep. Instead of re-upping with the Spurs when his rookie contract expired, Walker signed a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2022. This was a smart gamble, as playing well for a championship-contender could’ve led to him securing a lucrative long-term deal. In fact, one of his former teammates —Derrick White —has done just that with the Celtics.
To Walker’s credit, he did play reasonably well for the Lakers. In the regular season, Walker averaged 11.7 points per game while shooting 36.5 percent from deep. In the 2023 NBA Playoffs, he posted 6.2 points per game while knocking down 38.2 percent of his threes. However, with Los Angeles scrambling to find the right combination in their supporting cast, he wasn’t re-signed.
Instead, Walker landed with the rebuilding Brooklyn Nets, thinking that he would have more opportunities to show his game. Like most of the world, Walker must’ve underestimated the impact that Cam Thomas would have, as he played even less in Brooklyn than in with the Lakers. Still, Walker averaged 9.7 points per game while shooting 38.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Will He Eventually Land With Celtics?
Walker wasn’t exactly knocking it out of the park. Numbers aside, he’s a streaky scorer whose impact in other areas is too inconsistent to be considered reliable. However, at just 25 years, he’s more than young enough to keep maturing. Furthermore, the humility he had shown in accepting any role demonstrates that he had the mentality to star in his role.
That being said, it’s understandable why he would believed he should have an NBA contract right now. This is especially true after his strong finish to the Celtics’ preseason and the reality that he’s better than a couple of their current players. Unfortunately for Walker, the NBA’s punitive CBA has affected the way teams utilize their roster spots. In Boston’s case specifically, there was hesitance about raising their already-high tax bill.
Should the Celtics find a trade partner for Jaden Springer, there may still be hope for Boston to sign Walker. Until then though, safe travels.
